We are getting ready to enter into the season of Lent. Can you talk about the nature of the season? During Lent, we are invited into the desert with Jesus as he fasted and prayed for 40 days in preparation for his public ministry.

The 2017 Lenten season begins on Ash Wednesday, March 1, for Latin-rite Catholics. In a particular way during Lent, we are asked to devote ourselves to the spiritual and corporal works of mercy that "remind us that faith finds expression in concrete everyday actions meant to help our neighbors in body and spirit."

Statistical and anecdotal evidence demonstrates that parents are the number one influence on the faith lives of young people. More specifically, study after study finds that the role of the father in particular is critical in handing on an active spiritual life to his children.

The Catholic Church, through Catholic Charities Archdiocese of New Orleans and Second Harvest Food Bank, is currently in the field providing counseling and case management services to those affected by yesterday’s storm.